The Syrian Coalition’s political committee on Friday met with representatives of friends of the Syrian people to discuss the latest field and political developments in Syria.

The two sides discussed the plight of civilians in Raqqa in the presence of head of the local council in Raqqa, Saad Shawish, and a number of activists from the province.

The political committee called for the opening of humanitarian corridors for civilians trapped in the city to escape and for the delivery of humanitarian and medical aid to civilians fleeing the ravaged city. Hundreds of civilians, including children and women, have been killed as a result of the fierce fighting between the ISIS extremist group and the militias of the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) which are supported by the United States.

Participants in the meeting discussed the Democratic Union Party’s (PYD) prevention of civilians fleeing the fighting in Deir Ezzor and Raqqa from seeking refuge in the areas under the control of the PYD militias in northeastern Syria. The PYD militias are forcing those civilians to live in camps set up out in the open, which activists call "camps of death."

The two sides discussed the recent meetings held in the Saudi capital Riyadh between representatives of the opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC) and the Cairo and Moscow platforms.

Members of the political committee called on countries supporting the Syrian revolution to continue its political support to the HNC’s delegation to Geneva talks. They stressed that "standing on our side to meet the current challenges will help bring about a real political transition in Syria."

A genuine political transition cannot be achieved with Bashar al-Assad holding to power, members of the political committee stressed. They added that Assad’s survival will bring tyranny and corruption back to Syria and will lead to more violence, which in turn risks spawning new forms of terrorism threatening international peace and security. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)